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Pennsylvania HS football

00shoe

Well-Known Member
Dec 24, 2003
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Commitments were announced today for Division one HS. football recruits. PSU. Brought in 27
players and only 4 were from PA. Temple also had 4 PA. signers. Says something about PA. HS football now.
 
Do you think the talent is down or are kids going other places. Seems like a good number of kids signed today.
 
According to the 247 Compsosite (which puts all of the ranking sites together), here are where the top 25 players in PA are going (national rank in parenthesis where applicable)
Ohio State (#2)
Notre Dame (#139)
Penn State (#338)
Pitt (#344)
Penn State (#534)
Penn State (794)
Michigan State (803)
Penn State (864)
North Carolina (917)
Kansas State (938)
Virginia
Rutgers
Purdue
Syracuse
Boston College
Wisconsin
East Carolina
Harvard
Maryland
Western Michigan
Virginia Tech
UMass
Villanova
Akron

For reference, here is what it looked like 10 years ago:
Florida (#6)
Ohio State (#113)
Penn STate (129)
Michigan (137)
Penn State (149)
Penn State (168)
Penn State (196)
Penn State (243)
Penn State (274)
Penn State (296)
Boston College (322)
Pitt (353 - Aaron Donald)
Pitt (356)
Maryland (360)
Michigan (390)
Pitt (428)
Maryland (465)
Pitt (496)
Pitt (629)
Michigan (660)
Purdue (676)
North Carolina (701)
Boston College (703)
Syracuse (709)

So the third best player in this year's class would be the 12th best player a decade ago. The fifth best player in this class would have been the 20th best player a decade ago.

Go back five years earlier, the 25th ranked player was #467 nationally - that would put him fifth in this year's class. The #2 player this year (Michael Carmody) would have been ranked 10th in the class 15 years ago.
 
According to the 247 Compsosite (which puts all of the ranking sites together), here are where the top 25 players in PA are going (national rank in parenthesis where applicable)
Ohio State (#2)
Notre Dame (#139)
Penn State (#338)
Pitt (#344)
Penn State (#534)
Penn State (794)
Michigan State (803)
Penn State (864)
North Carolina (917)
Kansas State (938)
Virginia
Rutgers
Purdue
Syracuse
Boston College
Wisconsin
East Carolina
Harvard
Maryland
Western Michigan
Virginia Tech
UMass
Villanova
Akron

For reference, here is what it looked like 10 years ago:
Florida (#6)
Ohio State (#113)
Penn STate (129)
Michigan (137)
Penn State (149)
Penn State (168)
Penn State (196)
Penn State (243)
Penn State (274)
Penn State (296)
Boston College (322)
Pitt (353 - Aaron Donald)
Pitt (356)
Maryland (360)
Michigan (390)
Pitt (428)
Maryland (465)
Pitt (496)
Pitt (629)
Michigan (660)
Purdue (676)
North Carolina (701)
Boston College (703)
Syracuse (709)

So the third best player in this year's class would be the 12th best player a decade ago. The fifth best player in this class would have been the 20th best player a decade ago.

Go back five years earlier, the 25th ranked player was #467 nationally - that would put him fifth in this year's class. The #2 player this year (Michael Carmody) would have been ranked 10th in the class 15 years ago.


Good research Rover. Speaks volumes!!
 
PA football is slipping. The WPIAL is a shell of its former self and that is part of the drop off.
 
Talking about national rankings. Much has changed from 10 years ago. Let’s use basic logic here. The reach and exposure is not of the old makeup. By old make up I mean you have to go to the following locations for talent.

10 years ago (even more before that)
1. Florida
2. Texas
3. PA
4. Ohio
5. California

With Hudl and Twitter, 7on7, College camps you are now looking at the following.

Player - hey coach @random check out my film I have an offer from these schools

Coach Random hey @player we like your film, and are going to offer you. Just need you to come to camp.

The numbers are skewed because the exposure is greater than its ever been. Think VHS tape being mailed hoping the coach sees it vs digital link that everyone sees. The only reason PA kids are ranked lower now is because there is a kid in Nebraska somewhere that’s a national recruit, and guess what? He’s not going to Nebraska either but he’s taking that spot away from the PA kid on the national scale. Recruiting bias by geography in large has dissipated thanks to technology.

Regarding football being watered down, that I agree with , but you have to blame the folks who are trying to make everyone happy. One day you will have enough classifications to appease everyone. Teams will by default become district champs and make state title runs. No d12 schools will exist in the new PIAA and you will see schools who just aren’t good hoisting the not so coveted state title because it will be watered down.

However, I wonder what the level of football looks like with 4 classifications. Bet ya it’s great product.

Southern Columbia
Prep
Imhotep
Wood
Gateway
Harrisburg
CVille
Erie Cathedral
PCC

And other schools of the prowess along with all current 5 and 6A schooled all competing for the same crown, now that’s high quality football. And don’t give me enrollment or recruitment because now we have a success factor.
 
A few years ago I was at a Penn State football clinic and was talking to Jeff Methany (HC of Bethel Park) and he asked me. What is the difference between North Carolina and Pennsylvania football. I responded by saying , when I first moved to NC in 1998 PA was better , they had good skill that was close to the skill of NC but the OL play back in PA was far superior and that was the difference. Now the OL play here has vastly improved and the skill down here is off the charts. PA is bleeding population int he western half of the state. Almost every county (even Allegheny) has lost people over the past decade and sooner or later that will have an effect on the number of athletes playing football. Another reason is this who a district can or can not hire to coach. In States like VA, NC, SC, GA, FL, TN, AL, TX, LA, schools can hire whomever they want and will have a teaching job to offer with the head coaching job. That's huge, my old high school in PA has a HC football opening but no teaching job. Heck I have been a head coach at 4 high schools here and got teaching job at all 4. Thing is in 1998 I would have jumped at the chance to coach at my old high school but now there is no way. Plushttps://carolinapreps.com/2019/12/19/touring-the-new-spartanburg-athletic-facilities/ this is a high school in SC tell me one school in PA who has stuff like this. So as Ric Flair once said "Yall playing catch up ball"
 
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